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Auction No.089: Art Nouveau - Art Déco

Auction No.089, 20 and 21 April 2010

Art Nouveau - Art Déco
Hagenauer - Private Collection

Public viewing:
15. / 16. April: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
17. / 18. April: 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.
19. April: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
 

Pre Auction Report 'Hagenauer - Private Collection'

A collection of 329 metal items by the Hagenauer workshop in Vienna embodies one of the highlights of the Art Nouveau-Art Deco auction that Quittenbaum will hold in two sessions on 20 and 21 April.

The collection, accumulated over the past 25 years, shows the full range of the famous Viennese manufacturer of bronze and metal sculptures: decorative candlesticks, matchholders, ash extinguishers, bookends in the shape of stylised animals, tribal figurines, dancers, portrait busts and radiator mascots. Most of the items were designed and made between the 1920s and the 1950s; prices range from estimates of € 60 for small serially produced objects to € 12,000 for a handmade sculpture by Franz Hagenauer. Carl Hagenauer, a trained gold and silversmith had founded his workshop in 1898 and was one of the first metal workers to embrace the new shapes of the Art Nouveau era. In 1919, Karl, his eldest son joined the workshop. His main focus was on the everyday implements that he provided with geometric contours and great functionality. In 1925, also the youngest son, Franz, came to work at his father’s shop, that at that time already florished and exported its goods even to the United States. One of Franz’ teachers had been sculptor Anton Hanak. Thus, Franz Hagenauer concentrated first on making sculptures, like the two female heads that Quittenbaum is going to offer, designed c. 1930, made of brass (€ 12,000) or an early mask of handwrought Alpacca, c. 1925 (€ 2,400).

Karl Hagenauer designed, among others, a coffee service and an elegant tea set that show his penchant for simple, functional shapes. A series of African warriors, dancers and children demonstrate in contrast Europe’s interest in exotic cultures and foreign people, most pronounced in the beginning of the 20th Century. The Hagenauer workshop did not create naturalistic depictions, but decorative archetypes like a sitting warrior (€ 1,200) and an African woman with child (€ 1,200). Most coveted in the United States, were the decorative small bronze figurines by Hagenauer, like ‚Felix the Cat’ as radiator mascot, from 1928, of brass (€ 840). In contrast to the Wiener Werkstätte, that went bankrupt in 1936 due to the Great Depression, the Hagenauer workshop prevailed. In the 1950s, they started producing figurines of wood and even had a special furniture line. Franz Hagenauer continued to design elegant metal sculptures until his death in 1986.